Welcome to the first week of Treatment of Forensic Populations.
Psychology professionals may work years in their professional settings and never think about treating forensic populations such as sex offenders, drug abusers and offenders, or violent offenders. In fact, many psychology professionals (and many members of the public) shy away from such populations, choosing to believe that these people are best helped by remaining “locked up� or left to the resources of a prison treatment setting. Other psychology professionals, however, see the benefits of working with challenging forensic populations—not just for the person receiving services but also for the greater social good that can come from offering services to forensic populations. Ultimately, deciding whether to specialize in the treatment of forensic populations is a personal one that requires knowledge about various forensic settings, crimes, and treatments.
This week, you examine the fundamentals of treating forensic populations. You consider a variety of forensic settings and external dimensions, that is, the factors outside of treatment that can affect practice in forensic settings such as social support, available resources, access to treatment, and other practice challenges. You also become familiar with this course as a whole and reflect on how it might help you meet some of your professional goals.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
By the end of this week, you should be able to:
Apply concepts and strategies related to the treatment of forensic populations to professional practice goals
Analyze similarities and differences among forensic settings (prisons, jails, community corrections)
The feelings generated when treating an individual in a forensic setting can range from sorrow to fear and nearly every emotion in between. Working with people who have been discounted by their own families and by society provides the forensic psychology professional with an opportunity to make a difference in the life of the person being treated as well as society at large. Unfortunately, such rewards can be hard earned. Treating forensic populations can be challenging, both professionally and personally. Forensic psychology professionals working in these settings must be comfortable with their surroundings, and recognize the benefits of doing this work as well as the risks that may be present.
The psychology professional working in forensic settings not only must have the clinical skills to practice in these settings but also must have a solid understanding and appreciation for the differences that forensic treatment settings present. They must also have tools for navigating the field of forensic psychology. You will find that the knowledge base, concepts, and strategies for treating forensic populations do not exist in a bubble and, therefore, you can apply what you learn in this course to different aspects of your professional career.
Resources
Be sure to review the Learning Resources before completing this activity.
Click the weekly resources link to access the resources.
WEEKLY RESOURCES
To prepare for this Discussion:
Review the Course Introduction and Syllabus. Reflect on the focus of this course as well as the concepts and strategies that will be addressed. Think about how these items relate to your professional identity and goals.
Review Chapter 1 “The Scope and Purposes of Correctional Treatment,� in the course text Correctional Counseling and Treatment. Reflect on the focus of this course as well as the concepts and strategies that will be addressed. Think about how these items relate to your professional identity and goals.
Review Chapter 12, “Group Counseling in Corrections,� in the course text Correctional Counseling and Treatment. Pay particular attention to treatment strategies and approaches for forensic populations.
Reflect on your personal values and beliefs, and consider how they will impact your work in forensic settings.
Think about the areas of professional practice that are of interest to you as well as the areas that present challenges to you.
Think about the concepts, strategies, and treatment approaches related to forensic populations that you read about this week. Consider how they might affect your professional goals and the attainment of these goals.
Reflect on your professional goals and consider how this course might help you meet them.
With these thoughts in mind:
By Day 4
Post by Day 4 a brief description of your professional practice goals. Explain how you plan to apply the concepts and strategies covered in this course to the achievement of these goals. Finally, identify specific challenges that completing this course will enable you to address. Be specific.
Be sure to support your postings and responses with specific references to the Learning Resources.
Read a selection of your colleagues’ postings.
By Day 6
Respond by Day 6 to at least one of your colleagues’ postings in one or more of the following ways:
Ask a probing question.
Share an insight from having read your colleague’s posting.
Offer and support an opinion.
Validate an idea with your own experience.
Make a suggestion.
Expand on your colleague’s posting.
Return to this Discussion in a few days to read the responses to your initial posting. Note what you have learned and/or any insights you have gained as a result of the comments your colleagues made.
Comparison of Forensic Settings
The many different forensic treatment settings – prisons, jails, outpatient settings, community centers, and specialized treatment centers – provide many employment opportunities. Even within these settings, there are specific and differing programs that operate. For instance, a prison might operate a drug treatment program styled as an outpatient program, a residential drug treatment facility, a sex offender program, and general outpatient services, all in the same facility. In the outpatient setting, a forensic psychologist practitioner might be called on to conduct anger management groups, domestic violence groups, substance abuse services, and follow-up services with sex offenders after release. The diversity of practice experiences within the forensic system is impressive and sometimes even overwhelming.
But not every setting is right for every therapist. Some forensic treatment professionals are comfortable entering any correctional facility, while others might be more comfortable working at one security level but not another (e.g., a low-security facility might be more preferable than a maximum-security facility). There are forensic treatment professionals who find forensic outpatient settings similar to traditional outpatient practice and, therefore, more familiar and comfortable. It is important to assess and understand your own comfort level with the various forensic treatment settings before entering them and starting along your career path. One way of doing this is to consider the various settings and compare them based on external dimensions of forensic treatment. For example, how do the available resources compare between a maximum-security prison and a juvenile detention center? Are the practice challenges similar across the various treatment settings, or do certain challenges inhibit effective practice in one setting more than others? These kinds of comparisons can help you understand the potential challenges in a desired forensic setting. Comparing forensic settings can also provide you with possible interest in settings not previously considered, and inform you as to how external factors can impact your professional goals.
Resources
Be sure to review the Learning Resources before completing this activity.
Click the weekly resources link to access the resources.
WEEKLY RESOURCES
To prepare for this Assignment:
Review the article “Systemic Issues and Correctional Outcomes: Expanding the Scope of Correctional Psychology� in this week’s Learning Resources. Focus on forensic treatment setting issues. Note the various external dimensions of forensic treatment for each setting.
Review Chapter 12 in the textbook Correctional Counseling and Treatment. Briefly discuss the origins of group counseling. Next identify and briefly discuss 2 benefits and 2 disadvantages of group counseling. Finally review the stages of the group development process.
Select two forensic treatment settings to compare in this assignment.
Select two of the following external dimensions of forensic treatment settings to use in your comparison: social support, available resources, access to treatment, and/or challenges to practice.
Think about the similarities and differences between the settings in terms of external dimensions of forensic treatment settings.
The assignment (1–2 pages):
Identify the two forensic settings and the two external dimensions of forensic treatment you selected.
Compare (similarities and differences) the settings in terms of the external dimensions of forensic treatment settings you selected.
Explain at least one conclusion you drew or insight you gained as a result of your comparison.
Support your Assignment with specific references to all resources used in its preparation. You are asked to provide a reference list only for those resources not included in the Learning Resources for this course.
By Day 7
Submit your assignment by Day 7.
Submission information
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